ROLE OF THE PRINCIPAL AS SCHOOL LEADER.   Term Paper ID:28983 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Describes need for effective functioning of a variety of tasks.... More...

5 Pages / 1125 Words 8 sources, 9 Citations, APA Format $20.00 Return to List of Papers

Paper Abstract: Describes need for effective functioning of a variety of tasks. These include administering school operations, the budget, assignment of students to classes, teacher evaluation, problem solving, curriculum leadership. Discusses quality of leadership required to fulfill tasks. Character or personality traits required as a school leader. Paper Introduction: Introduction According to the Association of Washington School Principals (2000), the leadership position of the school principal is of crucial importance. Wide in scope, the role is said to assume professional, ethical, moral, legal, and supervisory responsibilities and accountability with the primary task being to create a school culture or environment in which children can achieve their full potential. But precisely what does the principal's role as school leader entail and what attributes and characteristics allow principals to function as effective school leaders? The purpose of this paper is provide a description and discussion of the role of the principal as school leader. The paper ends with a brief summary of the covered material. The Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. The principal'sleadership role. There is definitely empirical support for the notion that visionaryschool principals are effective in their leadership role. Summary This paper examined the role of the principal as school leader. According to Clark (2 ), it is the quality of leadership in all ofthese areas that sets the tone for the school's general climate. Lashway, L. 8. 3. ERIC Digest, 1 5.(ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. Clark, A.M. But precisely what does the principal's role as school leader entailand what attributes and characteristics allow principals to function aseffective school leaders? & Goldman, P. References Association of Washington School Principals. ED 343 246). As to the quality of leadership required to fulfill these taskseffectively and so determine a school's basic culture and climate, thereviewed literature indicated the leader must possess several character orpersonality attributes as well as attitudes. (1996). Recognize that teaching and learning are the "business" of aschool. ED 4 2 643). Classrooms will need tobecome learning communities in their own right in which there is basedknowledge sharing and socialization which fosters living and workingtogether. (1996b). The Role of School Leader In her discussion of the role of school leadership, Clark (2 )notes that it first comprises various tasks. So far the role of the principal as a school leader has been discussedas if the role were "static" and all that was needed was to explicate itsnature, functions and responsibilities. Additionaltasks were said to involve: enforcing roles, helping to solve problems, andproviding curriculum leadership. Make professional development a top concern. Conley, D.T., Dunlap, D.M. Principal matters. Similarly, Mathews (1996) reports that visionary schoolleaders are better than other school leaders in terms of connecting theschool to the community it serves. Introduction According to the Association of Washington School Principals (2 ),the leadership position of the school principal is of crucial importance.Wide in scope, the role is said to assume professional, ethical, moral,legal, and supervisory responsibilities and accountability with the primarytask being to create a school culture or environment in which children canachieve their full potential. Provide clear goals and monitor the progress of students towardmeeting them. Is there a public for public schools? In this regard,Conley, Dunlap and Goldman (1992) found that schools in which principalsare visionary leaders, are better able to resolve conflicts and formulatecommon goals. The purpose of this paper is provide adescription and discussion of the role of the principal as school leader.The paper ends with a brief summary of the covered material. 4. 6. (1992). Visionary leadership. Keller, B. Education Week, p.12. They will be, places where individuals learn how to learn. Lashway (1997) states that the true role of the principal as schoolleader is far removed from simply carrying out a variety of tasks assignedto the role. (1998, November 11). It wasnoted that the role calls for the effectively functioning in a variety oftasks including administrating school operations, the budget, theassignment of students to classes, and teacher evaluations. The role calls for the leader to be non-directiveand to instead, build cohesive groups by providing feedback, coordinationand conflict management. These were delineated ashaving vision, being ethical, recognizing the business of a school,communication skills, fostering standings, providing clear goals,monitoring the progress of the school in terms of fulfilling goals,spending time in classrooms, creating an atmosphere of trust and sharing,being adaptable and flexible as well as innovative in program developmentand management, refusing to tolerate poor teaching, and making professionaldevelopment a primary concern. The strategies of a leader. Given that this is the kind of leadership that is most effective,developing and exhibiting the foregoing characteristics can, therefore, beconsidered part of what the role of school leader calls for. Rather, the primary role is what Lashway describes as"vision," which he defines as the sharing of an explicit agreement aboutvalues, beliefs, purposes, and goals that should guide behavior. There has been agreat deal of research on effective qualities and characteristics ofprincipal's in their role as school leaders. ERIC Digest, 11 (ERICDocument Reproduction Service No. To fulfill this new role as school leader, Lashwaystates that the key attribute needed will be that of being an ethicalleader which he defines as a leader who concentrates on doing the rightthing rather than on doing things right. These include overseeing andadministrating: the general operations of the school, the assignment ofstudents to classes, the evaluation of teachers, the enforcement of theroles of other staff members, helping to solve and resolve academic andsocial problems, the maintenance of buildings, providing curriculumleadership, and developing, administering and operating the budget. For example, Keller (1998),based on an extensive review of the leadership literature, reported thateffective school leaders: 1. Provide an atmosphere of trust and sharing. Given the foregoing the key question to ask is: What leadershipcharacteristics and values make for effective functioning as school leaderin terms of fulfilling the tasks assigned to the role? Communicate the school's mission clearly and consistently to staffmembers, parents and students. In this regard, Lashway (1996a) reports that principals aremoving away from being instructional leaders whose concern is exercisingcontrol by setting goals, maintaining discipline and evaluating schooloutcomes. As Lashway puts it: Facilitation creates a collaborative, change-oriented environment in which teachers can develop leadership skills by pursuing common goals, producing a democratic workplace that embodies the highest American ideals....(p. OSSC Report, 32(2), 1-8. Heor she also possesses those skills needed not only to communicate thisvision to staff, students, parents but to inspire them to be part of theprocess of making this vision become reality. InLashway's view, the school leader has a clear perspective of how schoolbeliefs regarding aims, methods and school climate are to be achieved. (1996a). Document available at: http://www.nassp.org/index.htm. Lashway, L. Dayton,Ohio: Kettering Foundation Press. ED 4 6 718). Document available at: http://www.awsp.org/prinrole.htm. Foster standards for teaching and learning that are high butattainable. However, the fact of the matter isthat in the 21st century, there are several changes going on in theeducational system in general and in terms of principal's leadership rolesin particular. Interms of role specifics, Lashway reports that administrative tasks will bereduced in favor of more policy, standard-setting, research and informationsupport activities. 7. Ethical leadership. Mathews, D. The vision thing andschool restructuring. Refuse to tolerate poor teaching. Spend time in classrooms listening to teachers. Lashway, L. Learning and education: The importance of schoolprincipals. (2 ). In otherwords, the manner in which these actions are taken will be interpreted byothers in terms of what is to be considered important and the school'sclimate and culture will reflect the values expressed via the quality ofthe principal's leadership. (2 ). 1) Lashway (1996b) feels that to fulfill this role, school principleswill have to focus on greater innovation, resourcefulness and flexibilityin terms of how educational programs are organized. ED 397 463). (1997). (ERIC Document ReproductionService No. Rather, the leadership role required for the new millennium issaid to require "facilitative leadership." Lashway (1996a) defines this role characteristic as a moredecentralized leadership style in which the principal, as school leader, iscalled upon to build teams, create networks and govern from the center.This role is one in which principals encourage adaptation, problem-solvingand improved performance. ERIC Digest, 1 7 (ERICDocument Reproduction Service No. 2. 5. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.

Many of our Papers can be Downloaded From This Site!

PLEASE READ THIS, IT IS IMPORTANT!

Office hours are Monday through Friday, from 9 am to 5 pm (PST). You may place orders for custom research over the phone during office hours. E-mail requests can be made to our graduate and undergraduate department any time, and will be reviewed during office hours. You may also contact customer service any time through e-mail, and we will review your message during business hours. A great many papers can be downloaded right from this site, but not all of them. If you would like to know if a particular paper is downloadable, just look in the description for: "Available for Internet Download: Y" or "Available for Internet Download: N" If you wish to purchase a paper which is NOT available for immediate download, you will need to make other shipping arrangements. Also, please be aware that these orders are processed Monday through Friday from 9 am to 5 pm (PST). If you place your order after 4:45pm on Friday, it will not be processed until the following Monday morning. We charge $8 per page for all of our pre-written reports, plus shipping (and tax for California residents). However, the highest cost of any ONE report is $136, or 17 pages. Please, take a moment. Make sure you have chosen the report you want or need BEFORE you complete your order. If you are not sure, allow us to help you. We do not offer refunds or exchanges, so it is important for you to let us answer your questions during office hours. Reports which are e-mailed or downloaded are in Microsoft Word format. We are making more reports available for e-mail delivery faster than we can update our listings. Please call to check on the status of particular reports. There are many other shipping options which are listed on the Checkout page.